JK sums up "Rovegate" perfectly - Clean, Clear, and to the point

[emulatorloo]

<snip>

Now Karl Rove is embroiled in another controversy concerning the leaked identity of a covert CIA agent, which Bush Administration senior officials said was done to punish her husband, a man who had the courage to tell the truth about manipulated intelligence in Iraq

<snip>

Explained for anyone to understand.

Email in this thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=273x34309

[ginnyinWI]

1. I heard Lawrence O'Donnell on Al Franken last night

(on Sundance).

The interesting thing I learned, which few have touched on so far, is that if Rove leaked info to the press, it is only a crime if he was authorized to know the info in the first place. For example, if you or I leaked it to a friend, that's not a crime because we were not in a position to know, officially.

If Rove was not an authorized person (still unknown), then the one who leaked it to him is the one who committed the crime. The real story here is WHO leaked it to Rove. O'Donnell thinks that this is why Rove has had to go back to the grand jury three times.

My best guess would be it was Cheney or someone close to him. Probably not the frat boy himself--after Watergate I think they shield the prez from this kind of stuff when they can--they did with Reagan and Iran-contra. But who really knows! This is shaping up to be one of the key issues that will mark *'s second term--that and, of course, Iraq.

[bunny planet]

3. The story is out there about Powell having the classified info.

with him on Air Force One during his trip to Africa with * the week before the blowing of Valerie Plame's cover in Novak's article. Could they possibly trying to make Powell the fall guy as the leaker of the information to Rove? It still leaves KKKarl open to perjury charges (unless the premise that Rove wasn't authorized and therefore not criminally liable for the leak itself does't stand up in court) for saying he had nothing to do with the leaking to reporters whatsoever. If this is what they have up thier sleeve, I don't think it'll work, * was on that plane too. What did he know and when did he know it?

[ginnyinWI]

4. it is getting very interesting, in any case

If Rove perjured himself, it won't matter if he was authorized to know or not--it would be a separate offense. Curiouser and curiouser.

[whometense]

5. I watched too

because I missed a lot of what O'Donnell was saying on the radio yesterday (I only catch about every fourth word when I listen at work.)

The part that was new to me was when O'Donnell was talking about the judges' written statements. Especially the one judge who had sympathy for Miller and Cooper, who wrote that although he thought their claimed need to protect their source(s) had merit, the seriousness of the crime committed overrode the need to protect a source.

The sounds like a lot more than perjury.

[Mass]

2. I like this part as well...

It's perfectly clear that Rove - the person at the center of the slash and burn, smear and divide tactics that have come to characterize the Bush Administration - has to go.